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of the 3 monolithic tv's at the Sony Style that were "on the floor" and available to be viewed, none were the HX700 series. One was the NX with the aluminum slab-type base. the other two were various others but i specifically asked for and recall that none of the 3 were of the HX700 series.

nonetheless, the 3 were monolithic so i was able to view, up close, up really really close, how disturbing (or not) the distance between the LCD panel and the glass front is - after reading about various folks' negative comments.

from today's visit, i do not agree that it's a big issue, or an issue at all. however, that was based on one visit and under one set of lighting/circumstances. please bear in mind that this is at the video area of the Sony Style here in nyc, which is in the basement, so ALL the lighting is artificial.

i thought that i needed to clarify that i did not see an HX-series unit.

For those that haven't seen this Swedish review, I thought that I'd post it in this thread as well.

"Viewing angle is TV's weakest point, it is so bad that it makes a difference to some degree how exactly from the front you look at it. What it does best, rather than speed. Panel linked with a good image and substance of the TV a really strong point and is it's speed, the panel handles fast movement almost perfectly. \\In some cases, we may get some errors in the image at 200 hertz mode, but it was a long.

This seems to mirror some of the comments that others have said. I would say that if off angle viewing is the achilles heel of someone's setup, you might want to demo one first to see the extent of it.

of the 3 monolithic tv's at the Sony Style that were "on the floor" and available to be viewed, none were the HX700 series. One was the NX with the aluminum slab-type base. the other two were various others but i specifically asked for and recall that none of the 3 were of the HX700 series.

nonetheless, the 3 were monolithic so i was able to view, up close, up really really close, how disturbing (or not) the distance between the LCD panel and the glass front is - after reading about various folks' negative comments.

from today's visit, i do not agree that it's a big issue, or an issue at all. however, that was based on one visit and under one set of lighting/circumstances. please bear in mind that this is at the video area of the Sony Style here in nyc, which is in the basement, so ALL the lighting is artificial.

i thought that i needed to clarify that i did not see an HX-series unit.

Thanks for leaving your early impressions.

Yeah, I'm not really concerned about the distance between panel and the glass front. At the very least, it would never be a deal breaker for me, while others are sort of finicky to the slightest imperfections, styling, and function. At any rate, I'm growing more and more excited with each passing day to get mine.

i do agree that many LED backlit units are overly harsh in their rendering of colors. in fact, i find many CCFL-lit units far more natural looking.

I agree with poster eieio from N.Y.C. Maybe I'm imagining things, but after hanging out in video stores over the last eight years as a hobby ... I think some 2008 era CCFL LCD HDTV's definitely looked better than most, perhaps all 2009 LED LCD's. Meanwhile the 2009 CCFL LCD's were in a race to the bottom (of the price range) and did not look as good as the 2008 CCFL LCD's.

Results for 2010 models remain to be seen.

Without having taken delivery yet of a HX701, I feel fortunate in being able to obtain what is left of the better quality CCFL models. Wanted to get one before the race to the bottom of the price range drags "everyone's" picture quality "down" or "backwards". Newer is not always necessarily "better".

Wasn't much of a hard decision between the 2010 Sony USA EX500 / 501 model and the Canadian HX701 model. I was able to see the EX501 at local costco. It, the EX501 looks better than prior 2009 models from other brands at Costco. But in my humble or perhaps snobby opinion, the EX501 isn't worth getting excited about, IF you canafford something better.

A 55HX701 for $ 550 plus tax isn't a bad deal ... if it lasts for a reasonable amount of time during it's service life. Thank you to the Sony corporation (and the shark lawyers that represented dissatisfied consumer client's of Sony in various class-action lawsuits).

I Anticipate taking delivery of the HX701 Friday March 19, 2010 (tomorrow). Probably will be a few days before I report my initial impressions.

Anyone know if there is going to be any HX### series in the USA market this year other than the chosen few consumers who are obtaining the Canadian HX701 via replacement for green blob, yellow-stain KDS60XBR1 etc. circa 2005, 2006 etc. ?

I suppose the Canadian hardware cannot access Netflix and Sony will have deaf ears to USA consumers requesting a software update in order to access. Wonder if we will be locked out due to firmware PROM's. Just speculation on my part at this point.

Hope everyone enjoys their various HDTV's and new HDTV's, especially hx701's.

oh great, another big snafu at Sony: now, after two days of getting my tracking number, my tracking number cannot be found at DB Schenker! i called them, i tried to track on their website, they informed me that even with a local area search, they know that there is no shipment on its way to me at all.

Sony explicitly told me that this is going "on the truck at DB Schenker" this past Wednesday, 3/17th.

This is just one snafu and another. Many others on this thread has gotten theirs without these issues. What a bummer.

I agree with poster eieio from N.Y.C. Maybe I'm imagining things, but after hanging out in video stores over the last eight years as a hobby ... I think some 2008 era CCFL LCD HDTV's definitely looked better than most, perhaps all 2009 LED LCD's. Meanwhile the 2009 CCFL LCD's were in a race to the bottom (of the price range) and did not look as good as the 2008 CCFL LCD's.

Results for 2010 models remain to be seen.

Without having taken delivery yet of a HX701, I feel fortunate in being able to obtain what is left of the better quality CCFL models. Wanted to get one before the race to the bottom of the price range drags "everyone's" picture quality "down" or "backwards". Newer is not always necessarily "better".

Wasn't much of a hard decision between the 2010 Sony USA EX500 / 501 model and the Canadian HX701 model. I was able to see the EX501 at local costco. It, the EX501 looks better than prior 2009 models from other brands at Costco. But in my humble or perhaps snobby opinion, the EX501 isn't worth getting excited about, IF you canafford something better.

A 55HX701 for $ 550 plus tax isn't a bad deal ... if it lasts for a reasonable amount of time during it's service life. Thank you to the Sony corporation (and the shark lawyers that represented dissatisfied consumer client's of Sony in various class-action lawsuits).

I Anticipate taking delivery of the HX701 Friday March 19, 2010 (tomorrow). Probably will be a few days before I report my initial impressions.

Anyone know if there is going to be any HX### series in the USA market this year other than the chosen few consumers who are obtaining the Canadian HX701 via replacement for green blob, yellow-stain KDS60XBR1 etc. circa 2005, 2006 etc. ?

I suppose the Canadian hardware cannot access Netflix and Sony will have deaf ears to USA consumers requesting a software update in order to access. Wonder if we will be locked out due to firmware PROM's. Just speculation on my part at this point.

Hope everyone enjoys their various HDTV's and new HDTV's, especially hx701's.

Lionanimail: Would you then pick the 46Z5100 over a 46NX700? I was offered both from Sony and I was leaning towards the 46NX700 but after reading what you posted I don't know what to do.

I noticed a slight reflection from the monolithic glass design. It was not "as-bad" as the best filtered plasma.

I have not noticed any irregularities during off-axis viewing.

I am impressed by the black levels.

With regard to overall picture quality, the first impression is that it is at-least as good as a XBR1. The XBR1 in the background had a fresh bulb and totally new "brains" in September 2009. (forgive me for forgetting the correct technical acronym for the "brains" MCU etc.)

The sound is acceptable. But like most users, I shall use a separate sub-system for audio. That is not connected, so I cannot verify or comment on lip-sync with receiver yet.

Just wanted to comment on LCD vs. LED. I have the 60XBR1, a 52XBR4 and have had both the 46Z4100 and 46Z5100 and now have an LG 55HL90 with 240hz and LED local dimming.

First off the XBR4 is still a winner however honerable mention goes to the z4100 over the z5100 for pure picture quality. I have been a big Sony guy as you can see however when I saw the LG 55LH90 I opened my mind and grabbed one (January 2010 build). This set has (no lip-sync issue) zero flash lighting, close to if not no zero clouding and the PQ is better than anything I have had. The 240 tru motion makes everything look so fluid and real that its eerie. Consumer Reports actually voted the LG90 number 1 over all.

Having said that I'm excited to be getting the 55HX701 in the near future I hope. I still love the Sony product and will be posting my observations in the near future.

If you decide to go LED you have to go full LED back lighting with local dimming. Its truley breathtaking.

I've had the KDL-55HX701 for a couple of days now so I thought I would give a report on my impressions.

1. Great black levels. Better than I ever thought possible for an LCD. I'm very impressed. The black levels are even better than my plasma (it's a 4 year old Vizio but I still wasn't expecting the LCD to have better blacks).

2. Confusing picture controls. They have these "scenes" that are basically picture/audio presets. If you tweak the "scene" settings the tv saves your changes.. Not sure if the scenes are saved on a per-input basis or not. All my inputs come in through my receiver so the TV has only one HDMI input. I am used to having one set of picture settings per input so it took me until just last night to figure out that I need to optimize for each scene. Part of what made it hard to understand is that the scene selection option is under the General Settings menu, not the picture settings menu (probably because the scene also has an effect on the audio) Even more confusing is when you select the Game scene, it activates a sub menu on the Picture settings menu that lets you pick between Game Standard and Game Original. I haven't yet found any description of what the difference is.

3. The glossy screen is a glare magnet. My TV is directly in front of a sliding glass door. I have a heavy curtain in front of the glass door which was fine for my old TV (matte screen) but with the HX701, I will need to get a bigger curtain. Light bleeding out of the side and top of the curtain is clearly visible on dark scenes.

4. Off-axis viewing is not a problem for me. I don't see any significant picture issues until I'm so far off axis that I wouldn't try to watch anyway.

5. I'm still playing with the picture settings. I don't have a calibration disc so I tend to try some settings and watch for a while and then decide what's bothering me about the picture. I've watched a wide range of stuff on it now and I think my settings are almost there. Once I'm really happy with them, I will share them with this group. I will probably have to get a good calibration disk. Does anyone have any recommendations? I've used Avia (SD) in the past but I haven't looked at the Blu-Ray offerings..

One final note for all you guys still waiting for delivery.. I didn't get an email from Sony regarding shipment until yesterday.. two days AFTER it was delivered. I think there are serious issues regarding notification and tracking. I don't know if it's a Sony problem or a problem with the shipper (I'm guessing it's the shipper). Anyway, hang in there, I don't really know why they are using DB Schenker instead of UPS or Fedex (I'm sure it boils down to money somehow).

One more thing for the people here who already have their sets.. Have you used the 6 degree tilt on the stand? I've got my tv tilted back and it seems to help a bit with the glare. Viewing angles are marginally better (even though they were fine to begin with)

I suppose the Canadian hardware cannot access Netflix and Sony will have deaf ears to USA consumers requesting a software update in order to access. Wonder if we will be locked out due to firmware PROM's. Just speculation on my part at this point.

In the interest of rumor control...

There is an input menu within the setup wizard for the HX701. It gives you the option of stating that the owner-operator is in the USA.

... One final note for all you guys still waiting for delivery.. I didn't get an email from Sony regarding shipment until yesterday.. two days AFTER it was delivered. I think there are serious issues regarding notification and tracking. I don't know if it's a Sony problem or a problem with the shipper (I'm guessing it's the shipper). Anyway, hang in there, I don't really know why they are using DB Schenker instead of UPS or Fedex (I'm sure it boils down to money somehow).

Hi pyoo and thx very much for your posts. much appreciated.

despite the fact that you didn't receive an email from Sony regarding shipment, did you know about the Schenker delivery coming to you prior to receiving the scheduling call? or, did you only find out about the shipment when Schenker called you 1-2 days before to schedule the actual delivery?

my shipment, apparently, is lost and nowhere to be found. Sony insists that it went out and Schenker has zero record of it, including all sorts of local area/zip code/name searches. None. nothing from San Diego to nyc with my parameters.

Yes, I saw that recent Consumer Reports. Correctly so they (Consumers Union) emphasized the substantial difference in initial cost between the affordable LG product and the other pricey Sony stuff. I seem to remember both the LG and Sony something or other were both rated red circle with white dot ("excellent") for both HD and SD picture quality. I don't think there were any other sets in the Consumer Reports rankings with both HDandSDpicture quality rated "excellent".

Wonder how each will endure before something internal fizzles and requires repair. Simply a matter of speculation about future events.

despite the fact that you didn't receive an email from Sony regarding shipment, did you know about the Schenker delivery coming to you prior to receiving the scheduling call? or, did you only find out about the shipment when Schenker called you 1-2 days before to schedule the actual delivery?

my shipment, apparently, is lost and nowhere to be found. Sony insists that it went out and Schenker has zero record of it, including all sorts of local area/zip code/name searches. None. nothing from San Diego to nyc with my parameters.

I did not have any clue that it was on it's way. The email I received that confirmed the receipt of my serial number (which got there in 2 days from CA to FL using a good ole Forever Stamp) stated that it would take 2 weeks for delivery. I figured 1 week if I was lucky.. I ended up getting a call three days after they sent me the email. When I checked my credit card account, it showed that they charged my card the day after they sent me the email. I figure I just got a little lucky in terms of timing.. perhaps my order hit their system at an opportune time? Living less than an hour away from the warehouse probably helped a lot too.. Packing Slip says Carson.. DB Schenker's tracking info says Long Beach.. all within an hour of my house. I was very happy to get it so quickly though. My wife is happy because she doesn't have to hear me go on and on about having to wait ... and the fact that she can watch Lost without having everyone look like the Navi..

I figure I just got a little lucky in terms of timing.. perhaps my order hit their system at an opportune time? Living less than an hour away from the warehouse probably helped a lot too.. Packing Slip says Carson.. DB Schenker's tracking info says Long Beach.. all within an hour of my house. I was very happy to get it so quickly though...

Well, pyoo, thx for your additional information.

You are lucky! my timing is far far worse than yours. They charged my credit card last week already, and only promised me that the tv would get "on the truck" this past Wed 3/17th, almost a week after they charged my card!

And now, even today, Fri 3/19th, DB Schenker has zero info on this customer reference number. in fact, Schenker assured me that they search thoroughly and there are NO packages from Sony to my area in nyc! they were very clear and spent a good amount of time looking on my behalf. i think that it has nothing to do with Schenker - it has everything to do with Sony's snafu between their communication between their customer service area and their warehouse. somewhere in between, the order got "stuck" and was never actually placed, hence, Schenker never got the unit! I'm obviously not a happy camper.

Sony is competent enough to charge me. Sony is not competent enough to ship me the tv that they charged me a week ago? How coincidental that their competency extends to charging credit cards and they gladly lose competency about shipping products.

Since this is officially a calibration thread for the HX701 - has anyone worked with calibration settings that can share? Mine should be arriving sometime next week.
Thanks!

It is my understanding for a valid calibration, the LCD HDTV should have experienced at least 100 hours of break-in time, before dragging the technicians with their equipment out to the house. The 55HX701 are just now arriving to market.

So it might be a few weeks.

However, if folks are eyeballing custom manual adjustments or with Blu-Ray or DVD HT discs aides ... there might be something available soon. In the tweaking department ... so far I haven't varied from the auto-"home" option of the setup wizard.

Can a current owner verify that the setup or options menu has a "reset" function if the operator botches a manual adjustment ? It's probably in there somewhere.

The diagram on page 9 of the paper manual enclosed within the HX701 box is correct. I verified that the digital audio OUT from HX701 transfers audio from the internal tuner, the HDMI inputs, the analog RCA input jacks and the internet ethernet input. I did not examine the PC audio input.

This provides additional options for those with home theatre systems, receivers, and amplifiers. Might be a simpler connection architecture.

As a point of speculation, it would appear that any lip-sync adjustment in an external receiver is easier to do for one input (from HX701 digital audio out) rather than from a variety of numerous inputs from several components to a receiver. Interesting.

-----------------------------
Separately, yes there is a reset option within the submenu for "custom" manual picture adjustments.

I've gotten to see the HX701 at a few Manhattan Bestbuys. It's so strange that this model is not listed on Sony's website, isn't listed in Bestbuy's website, yet is available in the Magnolia Home Theater section. I've only seen the tv in 46" and 55" sizes.

My impressions comparing it to the other screens around it were that it gets pretty deep black. The backlight was cranked up, though, so a richer black can be achieved.

I never thought I'd be saying this, but I have to agree with David Katzmeier on CNET in regards to blacks. The Sammy B860 was right by, and although it might not win on a black screen, when there is content on screen, the plasmas seem to look like they have slightly deeper blacks. I guess, again, that can be attributed to the backlight, or perhaps per pixel lighting- plasma's advantage.

Still, I think this set is probably using a new s-pva panel from S-LCD, and if anybody has a magnifying glass, perhaps we would see a new structure of s-pva for 2010. On axis, black bars were black- this is probably the best ccfl backlit lcd I've ever seen.

I've gotten to see the HX701 at a few Manhattan Bestbuys. It's so strange that this model is not listed on Sony's website, isn't listed in Bestbuy's website, yet is available in the Magnolia Home Theater section. I've only seen the tv in 46" and 55" sizes...

yes, likewise, i was at 14th street/Union Square BestBuy and saw that in the back wall at their Magnolia section, without any fanfare whatsoever, is this smaller HX701. No sign even! i went to the left side, behind the bezel, and saw a sticker that said it was indeed an HX701.

That area is kept always so incredibly dark that it is sometimes even tough to see what model you're looking at if there isn't a screen showing something bright!

I've gotten to see the HX701 at a few Manhattan Bestbuys. It's so strange that this model is not listed on Sony's website, isn't listed in Bestbuy's website, yet is available in the Magnolia Home Theater section. I've only seen the tv in 46" and 55" sizes.

My impressions comparing it to the other screens around it were that it gets pretty deep black. The backlight was cranked up, though, so a richer black can be achieved.

I never thought I'd be saying this, but I have to agree with David Katzmeier on CNET in regards to blacks. The Sammy B860 was right by, and although it might not win on a black screen, when there is content on screen, the plasmas seem to look like they have slightly deeper blacks. I guess, again, that can be attributed to the backlight, or perhaps per pixel lighting- plasma's advantage.

Still, I think this set is probably using a new s-pva panel from S-LCD, and if anybody has a magnifying glass, perhaps we would see a new structure of s-pva for 2010. On axis, black bars were black- this is probably the best ccfl backlit lcd I've ever seen.

Anyone who has the hx701 got the internet video link to work. Get network error.

Yes. I watched a Netflix "HD" stream last night for two hours via a direct hard-wire ethernet connection from a router. Worked like a charm. There was a lot of SD video clips from broadcast TV from late 70's in the movie. The 2006 footage looked pretty good. Was surprised.

Setup wizard was easy. It was so easy that I cannot offer you any advice.

My tag arrived in Fla. on Friday morning but they have not charged my card as of Monday around noon. Anybody have an answer as to how long it took them to charge your card? I'll figure two weeks from that point to get to NJ.

On another note my local BestBuy in NJ has the 55HX701 on display in the Magnolia area. Like in NYC there is no sign, no price tag and in my case no HD source even hooked up to it. I asked one of the guys to show me HD but he couldn't get it done. I'll be checking back tonight to see if they at least have blu-ray going.

That helps. I just received the e-mail confirming my sticker was received (it got there before noon Friday e-mail sent 1:00 Monday) and that they would be placing my order. I'll be expecting my card to be charged either tomorrow or Wednesday based on your situation. My cousin is right behind me by about a day. His sticker arrived at Sony on Saturday. I'll post my updates for other prospective members as it happens. Thanks again.

yes, likewise, i was at 14th street/Union Square BestBuy and saw that in the back wall at their Magnolia section, without any fanfare whatsoever, is this smaller HX701. No sign even! i went to the left side, behind the bezel, and saw a sticker that said it was indeed an HX701.

That area is kept always so incredibly dark that it is sometimes even tough to see what model you're looking at if there isn't a screen showing something bright!

Went into our local BBuy as well and saw the TV. Sales guy stated that the set was brand new and not in the systems yet. We have a 50" XBR1 with the problem and are trying to decide between the 55HX701 and the 52EX701.

The picture on the HX701 seemed "grainy" for lack of a term, especially the background images. The source was a BluRay of Pirates of the Carribien that was fed through a Bose system. Wife and I were leaning towards the HX701 and still have that as an option until Friday, but we are concerned about the picture. Was it a Best Buy setup issue? Is it just how things look on that size of a television? Our other TV is a 40" XBR6.